Southern yellow bat facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Southern yellow bat |
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Lasiurus
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| Species: |
ega
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The southern yellow bat (Lasiurus ega) is a type of vesper bat. It is a small bat that belongs to the group called microbats. These bats are found in South America, North America, and Central America. Their home stretches from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, United States, all the way down to Argentina.
Contents
What Does the Southern Yellow Bat Look Like?
The southern yellow bat is a small bat. It has bright yellow fur, which is how it got its name. Female bats are usually a bit bigger than males. For example, a female's forearm is about 4% longer than a male's.
Where Do Southern Yellow Bats Live and What Do They Eat?
Where Do Southern Yellow Bats Live?
Southern yellow bats live in many places. You can find them from the southwestern United States down to northern Argentina and Uruguay. The farthest south they have been seen is in the Buenos Aires province of Argentina.
These bats like to live in wooded areas. They prefer forests, leafy trees, and palm trees. Sometimes, they might even live in places that look like big dead leaves. This could include dried corn stalks or thatched roofs. They often roost, or rest, in trees and other plants. In Texas, they especially like the dead fronds of palm trees. These fronds hang down around the tree trunk. They create a dark, safe place for the bats to hide. Palm trees also have lots of insects, which are a tasty meal for these bats.
What Do Southern Yellow Bats Eat?
The southern yellow bat is a nocturnal animal. This means it is active at night. It is also an insectivore, which means it eats insects. These bats hunt for small to medium-sized flying insects. They usually fly out to find food for one to two hours after the sun sets. They often feed close to where they roost. They only fly as far as they need to for water.
How Do Southern Yellow Bats Behave?
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Southern yellow bats have a unique way of reproducing. They mate before the end of their hibernation period. However, the female bat can store the male's cells for up to six months. She waits to become pregnant until later. The female's body parts involved in reproduction become inactive after mating in July. They stay inactive until the following April.
Once the female becomes pregnant, the pregnancy lasts for about 3 to 3.5 months. The young bats are then born in late spring or early summer. Female southern yellow bats usually have one breeding period each year.
How Do Southern Yellow Bats Fly?
Southern yellow bats can fly far. They have even been seen flying far out over the sea. They also move south during certain times of the year. This is called seasonal migration.
Why Do Southern Yellow Bats Migrate?
In the northern parts of their home range, male southern yellow bats become harder to find between April and June. Female bats, however, stay in the same area all year. This suggests that the males might migrate. Southern yellow bats tend to move towards the Equator. This is a common pattern for other bats in the same group.
Bats that migrate along coastlines sometimes take shortcuts over the water. Many bats in North America can be found far from their usual spots during spring and fall migrations. This often happens when strong winds blow them off course. Records of southern yellow bats in the Southern Hemisphere show them moving at the end of summer and beginning of fall. This supports the idea that some bats migrate to avoid cold weather. It seems less likely that their sightings over the South Atlantic Ocean were just due to wind.
See also
In Spanish: Murciélago amarillo para niños
